Conventional hand carried cases such as briefcases, camera cases, equipment cases and other utility cases are primarily designed to facilitate the storage and transporting of documents, supplies and other implements. In many situations, such as when in transit or when making presentations, a suitable table or structure, in which to place an open case, is not available. In these situations, the case must be placed on the floor or some other surface that is not conducive to protect the case from abrasions or contamination from floor debris. Additionally, when the case is placed on a low surface, the retrieval of the case contents is in many instances difficult and at best is cumbersome.
There have been attempts in the prior art to increase the utility of a case by incorporating into the case design, a set of foldable or telescoping legs. The foldable leg designs, aside from being bulky and unwieldy, greatly reduce the case's aesthetic appearance. The telescoping leg designs are complex in that several external and internal components are required for their operation. Additionally, the internal components reduce the carrying capacity of the case and several modifications must be made to the case structure to install and operate the prior art designs.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention, however, the following U.S. patents were considered related:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. INVENTOR ISSUED ______________________________________ 4,790,416 Baker 13 December 1988 4,412,604 Bell, et al 1 November 1983 4,034,518 Trecker 12 July 1977 2,522,322 Wallace 12 September 1950 837,855 Goldin 17 December 1907 ______________________________________
The Baker patent, which is assigned to the applicants of the instant application, discloses a rigid carrying case, such as a briefcase, that includes a removable flat writing top that is attached when the case is opened. The invention also includes a set of four legs that when not in use, are stored within respective leg housings located within its case. Each leg is individually released from its housing by depressing a corresponding release button protruding outside the case. When the four legs have been extended, the case, while being held above a supporting surface, is opened allowing each pair of legs to cross. The crossed legs then support and allow the case to be propped upright in an open position.
The Bell patent discloses a combination luggage case and stand with an extension. The case has an openable top with a hinged cover and foldable legs. This folding structure includes a fork shaped support used as a table, and a second position raising the nose to be horizontal, forming an extension table.